Invasion in the Pridelands
by Wind Baggins
Summary: In an attempt to get rid of Zim by using the paranormal, Dib and Zim both have been turned into lion cubs. They are then shipped to Africa where they meet the various inhabitants of the Prideland. Now they have to work together to return to normal, but can the Pridelands has many secrets and they will be hard-pressed to survive.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one

It was dark by now, the stars just beginning to peep out in the sky while the sickle-moon shone faintly through the smog of the city. Zim walked down the sidewalk with his fists clenched angrily at his sides. Hours of walking looking for GIR and the little SIR Unit had been back at the base the entire time! That horrible robot! Next time Zim would make sure GIR would tell him when he was going out and exactly where he was going.

Suddenly Zim stopped mid-stride, looking back over his shoulder. For the past block and a half a suspicious looking bush had been shadowing him and sure enough it was still there, only five feet from him now. Zim narrowed his eyes. "Dib, this is your most pitiful spying attempt yet." He said. The bush rustled and the unmistakably big head of Dib popped out of the top. "Took you long enough to notice." Dib sneered. "Did you only just now realize I was here?"

"Of course I new you were here! Yes! It was… uh… all part of my plan. Yes! You have walked right into my trap!" Zim immediately thought of a reason for why he had done nothing about the bush stalking him for all this time. He was so clever.

Dib, however, did not look convinced. "Oh really? Exactly what trap have I walked into then?" He asked. Zim glanced from side to side, wracking his brain to think of some sort of horrible "trap" for Dib to have walked into. He could not afford to let Dib get away so easily. "My trap…well… I've got you all alone now, so there'll be no one to hear you scream!" Zim said, meaning to sound intimidating. "Uh-huh." Dib mumbled, climbing out of the bush and brushing stray leaves off his coat before facing Zim. He was in no way, shape, or form intimidated by Zim. In fact, he had something planned of his own that would surely give this Irken Invader a run for his money.

"You won't get away this time, Zim! This time I've got something that will stop you!" Dib said, beginning to get excited as he stood facing the alien. Zim rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest, leaning to one side in a pose that clearly spoke that he in turn wasn't afraid of anything this dirt-child could come up with. "What is it then? Another of your "para-normey" failures?" Zim said with a condescending chuckle. Dib smiled nastily, an expression he had noticed his self making more often since Zim came to Earth, some of the Invader's quirks subtly rubbing off on him.

Dib then reached into his pocket and took something small out, holding it so that Zim could see it clearly. "Ooh! Neat! What is it?" Zim asked, looking eagerly at whatever "it" was. It was small and appeared be made of polished wood, ornately carved with odd looking designs that spread out from the center, which appeared to be in the shape of some sort of large cat.

"This is ancient African talisman. I got it at the mall!" Dib pronounced proudly, holding aloft the talisman in the light of one of the street lamps they were standing under. "What's it supposed to do? I bet it probably doesn't work at all." Zim replied with a confirming nod. Dib shot him a dirty look. "It _does_ so work! And it… does something!" Dib said, beginning to advance slowly with the talisman held out in front of him. "And we're going to find out what it does right now!" Dib continued.

Zim feigned a yawn and looked bored. This was going to end as it usually did; with Dib looking like an idiot and Zim being proven as the superior being he so was. "Get it over with, then." Zim waved his hand dismissively.

All of a sudden Dib began to chant in some odd language, words that to Zim sounded garbled and nonsensical, Dib his self didn't even know exactly what they meant but had looked up the right incantation on . When the spell reached its utmost point the talisman began to glow a faint orange color and just as the incantation came to an end Dib abruptly threw the talisman at Zim who flinched a little out of pure reaction at the unexpected motion.

The talisman bounced harmlessly off of Zim's head and fell to the ground with a tiny thunk sound, no longer glowing. There was a moment of silence, unbroken as the two foes stared down at the talisman. "Eh… that was anticlimactic." Zim said with a snort of laughter. Dib only looked sorrowfully at the talisman. "That was supposed to work. The guy at the mall told me it would work." He said with a loud disappointed sigh. Zim laughed at him. "Foolish, Dib! Your powers of corn are no match for a mighty Irken Elite! Ha! I AM ZIM! And I-"

Zim was forced to cut his little victory speech short as a sudden sharp pain made him double over and gasp. "Dib! What did you- ahhg!" Zim cried, falling to his knees. His squeedily spooch felt as if it was tying itself in knots and his head was spinning so much that he had to close his eyes before he became sick. All the while he felt as if he was on fire as the pain began to consume his entire body and he writhed against it. He let out a scream, but his voice didn't sound right, it sounded raspy and growly, not at all how he was supposed to sound.

All the while Dib stood back and watched wide eyed as Zim began to transform; green fur taking the place of skin while bones crunched and bent into a new quadrepedal shape. Whatever was going on, Dib's talisman had worked and he couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction at that.

Finally the pain ebbed and Zim shook his head dizzily, still reeling so that he could only see faint blurry shapes. Something was definitely wrong. Zim looked up at Dib once his vision cleared; since when had Dib gotten so tall? "What is this? What have you done to me?" Zim demanded, but the only sound that came out of his mouth was a yowl fallowed by a few grunt-like growls. That stopped Zim talking immediately. _That_ was not normal in the least!

"A lion cub? Why a lion?" Dib said, leaning down to get a better look at Zim. Indeed he had been turned into a lion cub. Green fur covered his entire body while his legs and paws were black, indicating where his gloves and boots had been. His wig had become a black mane.

Dib snorted a laugh. "You know, you actually look better this way, Zim!" He said, rocking back on his heels as he shook with laughter.

Zim raised one black paw, looking at down at it with an expression of pure horror (or at least what can be considered horror from a feline's face). His large rounded ears flattened against his head and his eyes grew wide as he turned in a circle trying to get a better view of his self. The fact that he now had a tail particularly unnerved him. He looked so comical that Dib nearly choked laughing.

"Dib!" Zim snarled, rounding on Dib with sharp retractable claws sliding out and scoring the sidewalk. Dib suddenly stopped laughing and realized that perhaps a lion wasn't such a good thing after all, as now Zim was more than capable of really causing him some physical harm. He backed away as the fur on Zim's neck rose and his tail lashed angrily. "Change me back!" He yowled, leaping for Dib.

However, Zim was not yet used to his new body and only ended up tripping over his own paws and landing face forward on the hard concrete, giving Dib the chance to snatch up the talisman by the twine that held it bound, and turn and head home at a fairly quick enough pace so that Zim wouldn't be able to chase after him.

"Good luck, Zim!" He laughed as he got away. "Hope you don't cough up any fur balls!"

Zim got up off the sidewalk growling irritably. "That filthy human! He will pay for this!" Zim vowed, awkwardly testing the movement in his paws and the balance of his tail. He looked ruefully at his torn clothes lying on the ground. That _really _irritated him. _No worries. I'll just get back to the base and fix this little problem. Then I'll exact my revenge on the Dib! _Zim thought, starting to amble back the way towards his base once he was certain he wouldn't trip.

It took him a little longer than it normally would, but he finally made it back to his own house, stopping at the door when he realized that there really wasn't a way for him to turn the doorknob. He scratched at the door like a dog (a dog with abnormally sharp nails that left deep slashes). "GIR! GIR, let me in!" He said as loudly as he could (which was pretty loud).

Before too long the door was opened by GIR who looked down at him with unbridled joy. "Awww! It's a kitty!" He said with an excited little giggle. Zim pushed ignominiously past him and into the house. "We don't have time for this, GIR. I need to get back to my _amazing_ self." He said, unaware that all GIR could hear was grunts and little rrr-owls. "I gonna call you Fluffy! And we gonna be beeeessst friends!" GIR said, wrapping his arms around Zim in a breath crushing hug. "Hehe! Don't tell Master! He don't like kitties."

"GIR! I _am_ your master! I AM ZIM!" Zim snarled, struggling out of GIR's grip with astounding flexibility he would never have been able to accomplish before. "You're hopeless." He grumbled, beginning to pad into the kitchen where he would then head down to his labs and get this mess straitened out.

A flashing red light and an alarm made him jump. "Security alert! Foreign organism detected!" The computer's voice said loudly. "Foreign organism?! I am Zim!" Zim protested. Mechanical arms and claws suddenly appeared from everywhere all at once, electricity crackling at the ends of some. Zim took a few wary steps back, and then whirled and ran as the arms advanced, chasing him out of his own base. "See you next time, Fluffy!" GIR called as Zim shot past him and darted out the door which closed with a slam. But Zim was not out of harm's way yet, now the gnomes came to life, their eyes glowing dangerously. Zim was only able to barely dodge a laser fired by the gnomes, the heat of the blast singing the fur on his back as he skittered wildly away, stopping as soon as the gnomes succeeded in chasing him off of his property.

Of course the security system would work this time. This time when he needed the base more than ever. Of course.

Well now there was no choice, the only other option was Dib. He had to know some way to take the spell off. Reluctantly Zim turned his paws in the direction of Dib's house, although not without a growl and angry lash of his tail.

He didn't get far when a box-shaped truck drove up close to him. The human text on the side reading "Animal Control." A man got out of the truck carrying a long metal stick with a loop at the end. He looked very bored and didn't seem too thrilled to have to be working this late anyway; but they had recently received a call about a predatory animal in the area. He looked at Zim with apparent disgust. "Keeping wild animals as pets. What is wrong with these people?" He muttered, advancing towards Zim with the stick. "Now don't worry, little guy. This will only hurt if you struggle." He said.

Zim let out a yell and leaped as the man lunged forward with the stick. Now his only choice was to run as the man perused him. _Turned into some horrible fur-monster, kicked out of my base, and now chased by this pathetic, smelly human! Can tonight get any worse? _Zim thought darkly as reached Dib's house, crashed through a hedge, and flung his self at a tree, digging his claws into the rough bark and hauling his body up until he balanced on a branched obscured by dark green leaves.

The stick-human seemed confused at Zim's sudden disappearance and doubled back, looking under cars and shrubs to find his quarry. "Pitiful human!" Zim spat.

He then spotted Dib's window and made his way across the branch, his heart hammering with fear when the branch swayed and creaked beneath him. He had to jump onto the window sill, which gave him quite a start as he jumped short and dangled momentarily with his back legs churning the empty air until he could pull his self up and squeeze through the partially open window.

Dib was just below him. Sleeping with a smile on his stupid human face. Zim's tail twitched and he crouched low on the window sill. "Change me back, stink beast!" He yowled, leaping with claws unsheathed down on Dib. Dib woke with a start and a cry as the Irken-lion cub crashed into him, throwing them both onto the floor. As Dib fell his hand flailed wildly for something, anything for him to hold onto, knocking against his desk where the talisman now went sailing into the air, landing on the back of his neck as they landed in a thrashing heap on the floor.

Zim got off hurriedly, scrambling backwards and tripping over his tail as he felt Dib writhe and twist under him, his muscles sliding and rearranging. Now it was Zim's turn to watch as the hideous transformation took over Dib, joints popping and grinding until a pale tan lion cub lay on the floor where Dib the human once had been.

Dib blinked and reached for his glasses with a paw, not realizing what had happened until he could see well enough to see the grey paw instead of a hand that had pushed his glasses back onto his face. "Zim! Look what you did now! You always mess everything up!" He exclaimed, looking up at Zim who was pressed to the floor with his ears flat and his eyes wide. He wore an expression of a mix between horror and fury. And perhaps revulsion. "Just change us back already! This little prank has gone on far enough!" Zim demanded, relieved that they could at least understand what the other was saying now.

The talisman slid off of Dib's neck onto the floor. Dib hooked it with one claw and looked at it, his expression unreadable.

"Well?" Zim asked impatiently as Dib said nothing. Dib swallowed "I don't know how to change us back." He said slowly and seriously. Zim dug his claws into the carpeted floor. "Are you saying we're stuck like this?!" He exclaimed. Dib let the talisman fall to the floor and shuffled his paws. "There's got to be some way to change us back. What about your labs?" He asked, looking hopefully at Zim. Zim only glared at him from narrowed violet eyes. "My base doesn't recognize me in this _filthy _form. There might be a way to disarm the base's defenses from outside, but I'm not sure I want to help you." Zim replied. Dib bared his sharp teeth in a snarl. "You rotten space monster!" He growled, ready to spring at Zim.

But before either of them could make any move the door was flung open, revealing Gaz in her pajamas. She did _not _look pleased to be woken up in the middle of the night. "Stupid cats." She grumbled, picking up one of Dib's shoes from the floor and preparing to throw it at the two of them. "You'd better get out of here or you're gonna pay." She warned. Dib looked scared but Zim wasn't afraid of a pathetic shoe. "You don't scare me, little Gaz. Just go back to bed or else-"

Gaz didn't allow Zim to finish his growlings and threw the shoe forcefully at him, striking him painfully in the head and forcing him backwards with the impact. She grabbed the other shoe and threw it at Dib; then began reaching for more objects to throw. Zim and Dib knew they were outmatched and promptly fled out of Dib's room, down the stairs, and out the door, all the while letting out yowls of fear.

"And stay out!" Gaz yelled, slamming the front door behind her. Zim and Dib panted out on the porch. They had escaped Gaz's wrath, but they were still no closer to returning to normal.

"We'll try your base then." Dib said to Zim, getting up and beginning to head down the sidewalk. He didn't get very far when there was a very loud popping sort of noise and Dib jumped with a squeak of pain. A brightly colored dart sticking out of his shoulder. Zim turned to see that the shooter of the dart was the man in the Animal Control truck who had a long-barreled gun pointing at the two of them.

Dib swayed and then collapsed unconscious in a pitiful heap. The man aimed the gun at Zim before he could gather his wits and run away. Another loud pop and Zim yowled as a second dart buried itself into his side. He staggered, fighting the effects of the drug. "Zim cannot be conquered by pathetic human tranquilizing devices!" He snarled defiantly. His legs suddenly shook and collapsed under him, his head felt very heavy. "It… won't… work…" He mumbled, his eyes beginning to close despite his best efforts to stay awake. "I…am…Zim…"

Then his head fell forward on his paws and he remembered no more.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two

When Zim came to it was completely dark. He could vaguely remember waking up a few other times but had quickly been drugged again before he could get his bearings.

Now he had absolutely no idea where he was.  
Slowly his eyes began to adjust to the dark and he could only just make out the wooden crate he was trapped inside. Trapped! He was trapped and couldn't get out! His heart began to pound as panic rose up inside of him, forcing away all sense and reason.

He scrabbled; twisting around in the tiny space as he desperately looked for any way out. He was an Invader, and Invaders could _not_ be contained!  
All of a sudden the crate bumped joltingly and light flooded in from a sliding opening. Zim didn't think twice before he shot out of the crate like a bullet, blinded by the sudden bright light he ran until he careened head first against a tree, abruptly stopping his panicked flight.  
He blinked dizzily and looked up stupidly at the tree he had smashed into at top speed. Turing his head from side to side he could see that he was in a wide field of some sort with tall golden grass and the occasional tree or rock standing out like an island. Behind him was a truck with several humans milling about beside two empty wooden crates. For a split second he didn't know why there was a second crate, and then he remembered; the Dib!  
_Where is that miserable human?_ Zim thought, looking around until his gaze fell upon the pale fur of Dib in his lion form. He blended in so well with the tall grass that Zim had a hard time spotting him while he with his shockingly green fur stood out like a sore thumb.  
Before either of them had a chance to speak the humans suddenly got back in their truck and sped away, leaving a trail of dust in their wake. "No! No wait!" Dib cried, bounding a few paces after them, but it was no use as the truck quickly drove out of sight, leaving them completely alone.  
"Where are we?" Zim asked Dib who stood panting in the dust left from the truck. He didn't reply. "Hey, Dib-filth. I asked you a question. Do not ignore Zim!" Zim said indignantly. All too suddenly Dib whirled around, lashing one large paw with claws extended at Zim, catching him on the side of the face. "You idiot!" Dib snarled as bright green blood splattered the grass. "We're in Africa! Because of you we're stuck here now!"  
Zim rubbed at the stinging slashes on his face, already beginning to heal. "_I'm_ not the one who got us turned into these smelly hair monsters." He growled. "That was _your_ fault."  
"If you had never come to Earth in the first place then this would never have happened!" Dib persisted, looking furious. Zim glared at him, his own claws sliding out of their sheaths. He tried to think of some nasty come back. "Your head is big!" He finally spat. Dib let out a yowl and leaped on Zim, scoring his claws down his shoulder. Zim batted back at him, but his claws only slid harmlessly through Dib's fur as he slipped to one side. Seeing his chance Zim gave Dib's tail a hard bite, feeling satisfied as Dib let out a squeal of pain, but before Zim knew it Dib had twisted around and slammed him down in the dirt, pinning him so that he could only thrash weakly. Zim was surprised. It seemed like Dib was adjusting to his new body much faster than Zim was, adapting to the new animal instincts.  
They would have continued fighting until one of them was very badly hurt, when a voice from somewhere up the tree Zim had first run into made them freeze. "Dat's not going to fix your problem." It said with a laugh. Zim and Dib stopped mid battle and looked up into the wide-set branches of the tree, startled that anyone would address them. "Who said that?" Dib demanded. An animal Zim couldn't quite recognize swung out of the highest branches and came to rest on the ground just beside them. "Monkey!" Zim growled. Zim hated monkeys. Ever since GIR had started watching that awful Angry Monkey Show Zim couldn't stand them.  
_Whack!_  
The "monkey" all of a sudden swung a long stick and struck Zim forcefully on the head. "Ow! Quit it!" Zim cried out in pain. "Correction; I am a baboon." The animal said. Dib snickered and Zim growled, the fur rising on the back of his neck and shoulders. The baboon warningly raised the stick again and Zim begrudgingly backed down, not wanting another blow to head at this point.  
"Who are you?" Dib asked the baboon while Zim angrily murmured under his breath, cursing in Irken. The baboon smiled. "You're a long way from home." He replied, his gaze sweeping over Dib and remaining on Zim for a long moment. Dib gave the baboon a hard look through his glasses. "How do you know that?" He asked. The baboon gave him a shrewd look. "If you want old Rafiki's help, I can tell you how to change yourselves back." He said. "Yes!" Zim and Dib said eagerly. "Wait, how did you know we're not lions?" Dib asked, hoping that Rafiki would at least answer one of his questions. "I've been around enough lions to know the difference." Rafiki answered. Zim looked at him wide eyed. "There's more lions?" He asked. Rafiki laughed. "Oh yes." He gestured in a northward direction. "Plenty more that way." He said. Zim swallowed. He wasn't really sure he wanted to meet more animals, at least not predatory ones and not in the current predicament they were in.  
"Then tell us how to change ourselves back!" Zim said, wasting no time in getting to the point. Rafiki put an arm around each of them, pulling them closer and looking hard in their eyes. "The curse on you is a tough one. It can only be broken once you have learned how to set aside your differences and work together." Rafiki said, speaking softly and earnestly. Then with a speed belying his appearance the old baboon leaped back up into the tree and disappeared with a hair raising laugh.  
Zim and Dib stared up after him, stunned into silence. Neither of them had any idea how exactly they were supposed to set aside their differences, or even what that meant. All they knew was that they were alone again, still without a clue of how they were supposed to get out of this mess.  
"He was absolutely no help at all! Stupid, pathetic Earth creature!" Zim grumbled. Dib cocked is head to once side. "It just doesn't make any sense. And how'd he even know we're not lion cubs is what I don't understand." Dib said. Zim shrugged his skinny shoulders. They both sat there then, still unsure of what to do. "Hey, Zim." Dib broke the awkward silence. Zim glared at him. "What?" He growled. "Can't you just call that robot of yours and have him come and get us?"  
Zim's tail twitched ill temperedly. Did the human even know how stupid he sounded? "Do you see my PAK?" Zim asked hotly. Dib rolled his eyes. "Well, no. But you're obviously not dying." He replied with exasperation. Honestly he was a little confused, but he wasn't about to let Zim know that. "It's sill there." Zim said, twisting his head around to try and look at his back. "It must have been fused down into me when I transformed." He concluded. Dib only blinked at him. "Then if it's still there use it to get us out of here." Dib said in response. Zim shot him a dirty look; he didn't need Dib to tell him what to do.  
Without another word Zim closed his eyes and tried to access his PAK, he could feel that it was sill there, but he wasn't entirely sure if he could use it. He grit his teeth, focusing hard. It was _not_ supposed to be this difficult.  
Dib watched with revulsion as Zim's back bulged. He let out a shriek of pain as his skin tore, a stream of blood turning his fur hot and sticky. "I can't!" Zim gasped, giving up when the haze of pain nearly made him pass out. He shuddered. Being unable to use his PAK scared him badly, but he supposed he should feel grateful that it was still giving him the vital life support. It only made him angrier at Dib for doing this to him.  
"Alright." Dib said swallowing. "So we can't use your PAK. Okay. We'll just, uh…" Dib looked around for anything that might possibly be able to help them.  
The sound of a snapping twig made them both jump and they found themselves pressed against each other in sudden fear. "Maybe we should get somewhere safer." Zim suggested, hoping it wasn't already too late for that. The grasses behind them rustled and Zim gasped as he barely caught sight of something moving, circling them, closing them in. Some sort of predator, waiting to pounce so it could feast on his squeedily spooch.  
Zim and Dib held their breath, every muscle tensed like a coiled spring, ready to fight or make a run for it, which ever came first. Whatever was hunting them moved closer, but all they could make out was a dark shape before whatever it was crashed out of the grasses, making them both scream. "Hey, Nala, Come check it out!" A brownish-gold lion cub with sparkling, happy eyes said excitedly. "There are two cubs I've never seen before."  
A second lion, this one lighter in color and clearly female stepped out of the grass and stood next to the first. "Hi!" She said. Zim and Dib shot each other alarmed looks. "I'm Simba, and this is Nala." The first cub spoke when neither Dib nor Zim replied. "Where are you from?" Nala prompted when still they didn't speak. "Er… not from here." Dib said awkwardly, not knowing how to explain to these two lions that they were actually a human and an alien from halfway across the planet. "Welcome to the Pridelands then!" Simba said with a grin. Zim looked confused. "The what?" He asked. "The Pridelands." Simba repeated, sweeping his tail to gesture about them. "It's our kingdom. My dad is the king and we live at Pride Rock. I'm the future king!" Simba said, puffing out his chest proudly.  
So, that was what they were calling this place then. The "Pridelands." Zim probably would have called it "stinky-hot-grassy-place."  
"I'm Dib." Dib introduced his self, interrupting Zim's train of thought. "And this is-"  
"I AM ZIM! The greatest Invader to ever live!" Zim crowed triumphantly. Simba and Nala gave him confused looks. "Eh. I mean I'm hu- I mean… I'm normal!" Zim said with what he hoped was an innocent grin. "He's an alien." Dib said. Simba and Nala still looked confused. They didn't know what an alien was, but Zim and Dib seemed nice enough. "Nice to meet you!" Nala said. Simba circled them, sniffing at their fur. "Do you have a Pride?" He asked. "Well, uh… we…" Dib mumbled, made a little nervous as Simba scrutinized him. "You don't have a Pride!?" Nala said, looking both alarmed and sad. "Then you need to come back with us." Simba said assertively, nudging both Zim and Dib to fallow Nala. "Okay, sure." Dib said, figuring something would be better than nothing and they would certainly be safer wherever they were going than out in the open. Wouldn't they?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

They padded along in silence then, making their way deeper and deeper into the savannah. Occasionally Zim and Dib caught glimpses of other animals, but Simba and Nala seemed intent upon where they were going and never slackened their pace.

Zim noticed Simba staring at him, his feline eyes practically burning holes into him. Somewhat irritated, Zim ignored him and focused on the ground beneath his paws, but he could still feel the lion cub's searing gaze, and it was beginning to make him feel uncomfortable.

"What?!" Zim finally snarled, snapping his head up until his violet eyes locked with Simba's amber. Simba never answered him but instead leaned toward Dib. "Hey, why is your friend green?" He whispered, although Zim could hear him perfectly well. Dib shot Zim a smug look. "Yeah, Zim. Why _are_ you green?" He asked with a grin.

"You know perfectly well." Zim almost answered out loud, but he wasn't about to let his ingenious cover be blown so easily. Not with Simba and Nala now looking at him curiously.

"I have a horrible skin condition." Zim used his typical excuse. Now Simba and Nala looked scared. "It's not contagious, is it?" Nala asked. "Yes. Yes it is. _Very._" Zim replied, meaning to scare them. It worked and both cubs promptly adjusted themselves until Zim found his self at the back of their little group. _That's right. You should fear me._ Zim thought, smiling nastily to his self.

Dib looked back over his shoulder, his glasses glinting in the bright sunlight. "It's incurable too. He'll probably die of it before too long." He said with a mock, sorrowful shake of his head. "That's awful!" Nala gasped, giving Zim a pitying look while Dib chuckled quietly. Zim bared his teeth at him. Pity. He hated pity.

Suddenly Simba stopped, holding up his tail proudly. "Here we are!" He announced. Before them was a large rock, almost like a small mountain jutting out of the grasslands. It was split down the middle as if it had been cut with a giant knife, one side pointing outward while the other stood strait and tall, pointing towards the heavens. With his enhanced eyesight, Zim could see an opening to a cave in the very crevice where the rock split and could only just make out brown and gold forms milling around the plateau. He flattened his ears against his skull; there were _a lot _more lions here than he had thought, just as that Rafiki-beast had said. And he could tell even from where he stood that they were much bigger than him.

_It doesn't matter. I'm an Invader, and I'm not afraid of anything! _Zim thought in an attempt to reassure his self. There was no telling what these creatures might decide to do to him after all.

"This is where we live. It's called Pride Rock." Simba said, still looking as proud as ever to introduce new comers to his impressive home. "It sure is big. I'm guessing you have a large family, then?" Dib asked, unable to see what Zim had glimpsed. Like Zim though he wasn't too keen on meeting a large pride of lions. He'd seen documentaries and knew that lion prides didn't take to trespassers on their territory very well. Simba and Nala seemed friendly enough, but they were only cubs.

"Oh yeah, our pride is probably the biggest one around." Nala said with a confirming nod. Simba bounded a little ways ahead and looked back over his shoulder at their little group. "Well, c'mon!" He said leading the way onward. Zim and Dib exchanged nervous glances before padding slowly after Simba.

Zim and Dib were both starting to feel out of breath and were panting as they climbed the steep, rocky slope up Pride Rock. Simba and Nala bounded up as if it was nothing, their paws having tread this place many times. Zim felt his fur starting to stand on end as more and more lions looked up from what they were doing to stare at them as they passed by. From what he could tell these were all female, but that didn't make them any less intimidating and Zim soon found his self rapidly looking from side to side, as if expecting an attack. The faces around him appeared to be merely curious, but there was no telling what might...

"Uff!" Zim was stopped in his tacks as he had been looking back over his shoulder and before he could look up to see what or who he had collided with a rough shove sent him back a few paces. "Hey!" Zim growled indignantly, baring his teeth and snapping his head up at whoever had shoved him, intending to give them what for; but his stinging words never left his tongue. Above him and now glaring at him with the same amount of contempt was another lion, and this lion was neither a cub nor a female.

"Mind where you're going." He growled at him, his green eyes narrowed to slits, the left was scarred.

"Uncle Scar!" Simba greeted the adult lion with enthusiasm. "These are my new friends!" He said, indicating Zim and Dib with a turn of his ears. Scar regarded them, looking less than amused. "Huh." He let out a breath. "Just stay out of my way." He said before sweeping past them and padding down the way they had just come.

"Geez, what's his problem?" Dib asked, looking back at the way Scar had gone. "Oh, Scar is just grumpy like that. But he's not so bad." Nala affirmed. Simba nodded. "Don't worry." He said to Zim who was flicking his tail angrily back and forth. "That just means he likes you." Simba said.

Zim said nothing in response but flexed his sharp claws in and out, leaving little dimples in the dirt. He felt a little embarrassed; he _should _have been watching where he was going. And that filthy lion shouldn't have even dared to disrespect an Irken Elite like that.

He looked over at Dib expecting some snarky remark from him, but Dib didn't seemed concerned with him and was instead contemplating the encounter with Scar based on what he knew about lion prides; Scar seemed scrawny and underfed, nothing like the leader of a pride should be, and he hadn't tried to eat them either. So if Scar wasn't the lead lion, who was?

"Simba, who are these cubs?" A soft deep voice broke Dib's train of thought. Now another lion had approached them and was now nuzzling Simba affectionately who bumped his head against her foreleg with a little purr in response. "Mom, this is Zim and Dib. They're lost and they can't find their prides. Can they stay here with us?" Simba said, looking up at his mother imploringly. She gave him a loving look back and then looked down at Zim and Dib in turn. "Where are your mothers?" She asked them. Zim and Dib exchanged anxious looks. "Well... we... uh...don't have any." Dib said. Honest enough.

"Oh, you poor things!" The lion exclaimed, looking sad. She then straightened up. "I am Sarabi, queen of this Pride. You may stay here for a while, but it will be the king's decision whether you can stay for good." She said.

_Stay for good?!_ "We will _not_ stay here!" Zim exclaimed loudly. "We-" Dib slapped his tail across Zim's mouth and gave him a stern look. "Be nice." He mouthed. Zim looked furious. "We don't want to stay very long, we're trying to get home, but it'd be nice to stay the night here instead of out in the open." Dib said, trying his best to come across as diplomatic and courteous. He didn't want to stay here any more than Zim did, but so far none of the lions had made any sign that they wanted to eat them, and come nightfall many other predators would be stirring and then they would wish they were in a safe place. Still, Dib was made a little anxious about the mention of a "king". Would this king be as eager to let strange cubs stay in his pride as his queen?

"Hey, mom, do you know where dad is?" Simba asked Sarabi, almost before Dib could finish his thought. Sarabi looked out across the savannah now stretching out below them. "He went down to the water hole to settle a dispute between some elephants and wildebeests. He should be back any time now." She said. She then made a sweeping gesture with her long tail. "Come and eat, we have plenty of prey."

Simba eyes lit up. "Great! I'm starved!" He said, bounding around a corner with Nala hard on his heels. Zim and Dib fallowed more slowly.

"Ehg!" Zim made a disgruntled sort of noise, his face contorting as the stench hit him. Flesh. Raw, bleeding flesh. A large stripy-horse lay dead before him, large parts of it were missing and it was still oozing blood, indicating that it had been killed not too long ago. To make matters worse Simba and Nala were now tearing into it, their muzzles becoming stained red as they chewed the meat happily, and a bit nosily. Zim felt as if he could be sick.

Simba stopped eating and looked up at them, swallowing and swiping his tongue around his mouth. "You can eat, ya know." He said before returning his attention to the meat.

Dib looked at what was left of the zebra with distaste. He didn't want to eat it, it was raw and looked nasty, but he couldn't deny that he was hungry, he couldn't even remember the last time he ate. The night he and Zim were changed he had had a dinner consisting of macaroni and cheese, but for all he knew that could have been days ago.

He stepped forward uncertainly, aware of Zim's hiss of disgust, and bent down over the meat. It didn't smell in any way _good_, it smelled like a dead animal that had been out in the sun all day, but something in Dib's lion body urged him to take a bite.

He chewed and swallowed. It wasn't bad, actually, and with a low feral growl Dib ripped off another chunk, letting the new feline instincts overcome his senses.

Zim watched wide-eyed with disgust, and watching only made his squeedily spooch churn sickeningly. _He _wasn't about to eat that!

"Aren't you hungry, dear? You look as if you haven't eaten in weeks." Sarabi said, making Zim jump a little when he realized that she had quietly padded up to stand over him. She was now looking at him with concern and Zim realized that he did look rather lean, bordering on scrawny with this new body, unlike Dib, Nala, and Simba who all looked healthy and well-fed. It didn't bother Zim in the least though. He wasn't concerned with his weight unless it interfered with his ability to function, and he didn't _need_ to eat. His PAK would provide him with all the nutrients he required.

But these smelly fur-beasts didn't know that, and the way Sarabi was looking down at him Zim knew that it wouldn't be "normal" if he refused to eat and the last thing he needed was suspicions to be aroused.

With a shudder that shook him from nose to tail tip Zim took a few tentative steps forward until the carcass was just at his paws. He didn't want it. Didn't want to eat the stinking flesh, but with all eyes on him he bent his head down and tore off a tiny scrap, gave it a few quick chews, and swallowed it as fast as he could. Immediately he gagged and had to clamp his jaws shut to prevent his self from becoming sick and bringing up the meat. It didn't burn him like the processed meat back in the city did, but it still left his mouth and throat feeling a little scorched, and the taste made him want to scrub his tongue.

None the less Zim forced down another small piece, his entire body convulsing as he fought to keep it behind his teeth, but he had at least eaten a bit in front of the pride and that was nearly more than he could do.

Sitting back on his hunches and trying to spit without being noticed Zim spared at glance at Dib, who was now washing the blood off his paws and muzzle. At first this seemed completely normal in Zim's eyes, when he realized the absurdness of it. Dib was a _human_, not a lion, and had taken to the feral behavior much to quickly and easily for comfort. Perhaps this spell was more powerful than they had originally thought. If the lion instincts were already beginning to overpower Dib, who knew what that meant for Zim? So far he felt unaffected, but he was an Irken after all, and this was not his planet.

Zim felt the fur beginning to rise in alarm down his spine and he had to make an effort to calm down. He decided to try something; "Stupid, smelly, big-head!" He said, making a point to speak loudly, something he was incredibly good at. "My head's not big!" Dib said with the usual insulted tone. He stopped washing his paws and glared at Zim. This was encouraging, at least he sounded more like his self now.

"And I don't stink!" Dib continued. Zim showed his light pink teeth in a nasty grin. "Yes you do. You smell like dumb, stinky, Dib-stink." Zim replied. Dib looked about to come back with some stinging remark when a sudden exclamation of "dad!" interrupted them. Whirling quickly they saw Simba rushing up to greet another lion. This one had a very thick red mane, was very golden, and very, very big. He chuckled, a deep sound like thunder rolling through the clouds as he bumped his head against Simba's, a motion that both Dib and Zim had come to recognize as an affectionate gesture.

"Dad, come meet my new friends!" Simba said, his whiskers quivering with excitement. Zim's heart began to beat fast as this huge lion turned his dark amber gaze upon them. He was so big he could eat him in one bite! His paws where bigger than Zim's head!

Dib was no less intimidated as Zim was and found himself wishing he could vanish down into the rock they stood on. _This_ lion was the leader of the pride. The "king" as they had called him. Zim may not know about African lions, but Dib knew that if this lion decided he didn't want strange cubs in his pride, especially male cubs who would pose a potential threat to is leadership, then he would kill them.

"What are your names, and what pride do you come from?" He asked in his deep and strangely melodic voice. Zim tried to stand a little taller and puffed out his chest, he wasn't about to show how afraid he really was to anyone. "I am Zim!" He tried to sound brave and commanding, but his voice only came out in a little squeak of "Zim".

Dib found Zim's reaction hugely funny, but as soon as the lion's intense gaze fell upon him his mood cooled. "I'm Dib." He said, a little subdued, but at least not as pathetic as Zim had sounded.

"Mufasa." Sarabi addressed her mate. "They say they are lost and have no pride." She said, sparing Zim and Dib from having to explain themselves beyond telling Mufasa their names. Mufasa's eyes softened and he regarded the out-of-place cubs with kindness. "You can stay here as long as you need. It would be cruel to send two lost cubs out on their own." He said, giving them a slow wink as if he had guessed their thoughts.

He then turned away from them as a bight-colored bird fluttered down to land upon his shoulder, something that both Zim and Dib found very odd and somewhat comical. "Good evening, sire." The bird addressed Mufasa. "Ah, Zazu. I was just about to go looking for you..." Mufasa's speech faded away as he padded away toward the mouth of the cave with Sarabi flanking him.

"Don't look as if you've eaten a bug, Mufasa just said you can stay, that's a good thing!" Nala said, giving Zim's shoulder a friendly nudge, her blue eyes sparkling with humor. When neither Zim nor Dib said nothing in response Nala lightly tapped each of them with her tail. "C'mon, I'll show you the best places to sleep." She said, leading the way to the cave.

Zim and Dib hadn't realized it, but the sun was quickly beginning to sink behind the far off hills, a few stars already beginning to appear faintly in the sky. Dib suddenly felt very tired. He had been on his feet all day and been startled into fight or flight mode more then once. His paws were staring to feel like they would collapse under him and he willingly fallowed Nala into the cave where she lay down next to her mother and indicated that they should curl up in the shallow dip beside her.

Zim, however, was not tired. He felt a little physically weary, but that would quickly pass. Irkens don't need to sleep and don't make a habit of it very often, their PAKs allowing them to function constantly at any time. And he didn't want to lay beside so many bodies. The very notion made his skin crawl, but begrudgingly he flopped his self down heavily on his side, scooching so that he wasn't touching Dib, Nala, or any other lion in the cave. Simba had curled up beside his parents at the back of the den.

As the last light of day faded away and the night slowly went on, one by one all the lions fell asleep, their deep, relaxed breathing and the occasional snore echoing around the stone walls of the cave. Zim looked at Dib with disdain as he he lay softly snoring and twitching in his sleep, uttering the occasional unintelligible word. Zim couldn't believe that the human had been so willing to let his guard down with so many predators surrounding them. Was he really that stupid?

_Well, _I'm_ not stupid. And I'm not going to sleep!_ Zim thought mutinously. He might take the occasional power nap within his console room in his base, but there was no way he would ever be caught sleeping anywhere else, and especially not here.

It was growing stuffy in the cave though and Zim quietly stood up and picked his way carefully through the many sleeping bodies until he stood alone upon the flat cliff outside. It was much cooler out there, and the stars were a comforting sight. Stepping to the edge of the out thrust rock Zim lay down and let his front paws hang off the rock's end. He rested is head on his forelegs and glared out into the night. His mind began to race; he _had_ to get back to his mission. Who knows what kind of trouble GIR was getting into, and the Tallest certainly would be wondering what had become of him. He regretted not reporting to them before this whole mess had started, they must really be worried about him.

Zim's rounded ears suddenly perked up as he caught sight of a slim, dark shape slip away from the base of Pride Rock. It was Scar, the rude lion who had insulted his dignity upon his arrival. The way he was walking, constantly looking back over his shoulder as if he thought he was being fallowed indicated that he didn't want anyone to see him leave.

Zim narrowed his eyes and flicked his tail back and forth. "Where are you going?" He muttered to his self, quickly and silently getting up to make his way stealthily down Pride Rock in pursuit of the shadowy shape of Scar as he disappeared into the night.


End file.
